Casement window operator



Sept. 10, 1940. L

CASEMENT WINDOW OPERATOR Filed Sept. 13. 1938 IN V EN TOR.

Patented Sept. 10, 1940 v UNITED; STATS CASEMENT WINDQW OPERATOR Albert Lang, Berkeley, Galif.

Application September 13, 1938, Serial No. 229,691 I 11 Claims.

,This invention relates to casement window operators of the type in which a pivotally mounted window controlling lever is actuated by a crank operated worm gear that engages a worm gear sector carried by the window operating we ment window operator of new, novel and practical construction.

Another object of the invention is toprovide a window controlling device of the crank operated type employing a worm and worm gear sector having improved means for maintaining the worm and worm gear sector in tight fitting and wearcompensating relation with eachother.

Another object of the invention is to provide a new and improved construction for casement window operators of the type employing a crank operated worm and worm gear sector in which the operating parts are movably supported upon wear resisting bearings of new and novel design.

A further object of the invention is to provide a new and improved assembly for mounting 'a crank operated Worm in a die cast housing of relatively softer metal.

Another object of the invention is to provide a new and novel mounting of .a casement window controlling lever by means of which the window operating lever may be conveniently and expeditiously assembled in cooperating relation with a crank operated worm carried by a supporting housing.

Other objects and advantages of the invention will be in part evident to those skilled in the art and in part pointed out hereinafter in connec-- tion with the accompanying drawing, wherein there is shown by way of illustration and not of limitation, preferred embodiments thereof.

In the drawing, whereinlike numerals refer to like parts throughout the several views;

Figure 1 is a fragmentary, sectionalized plan View showing an assembled operator constructed in accordance with one aspect of the invention, Figure 2 is a vertical, sectional view taken along line IIII of Figure 1 looking in the direction of arrows, and showing a portion of a window,

Figure 3 is a side elevation in section taken along'the axis of the crank operated worm, and also showing a portion of a window,

Figure 4 is an end elevation partially in section showing the manner of mounting the crank operated worm upon the housing,

Figure 5is a fragmentary view showing a preassembly of the window operating lever and its bearing forming member, and

Figure 6 is a fragmentary, sectionalized View showing details of a modified form of the invention.

In the art to which this invention pertains it has always been a problem to provide an operatorfor casement Windows-which will give positive control of the window in all positions whether opened or closed and. which will,.at the same time,' be free of any rattling such as might be occasioned by a slight breeze, particularly when the window is slightly opened for ventilation. It has also been a problem in connection with window operators of the type employing a crank operated worm and worm gear sector to procurs between the crank operated worm and the wormgear sector that is customarily provided upon the window controlling lever.; One prior attempt at the solution of the abovev difliculties is evidenced by United States Patent No. 1,539,- 549 to Edward I-I.Ellison, in which there is shown the combination of a crank operated worm and a lever operating worm gear sector in which the crank operated worm is loosely mounted in the supporting housing and is biased into close fitting engagement with the worm gear sector by means of a springthat exerts a sidewise thrust upon the worm. This arrangement is open to the objection that since the crank operated worm must exert its operating force in a small radius or lever'arm, a mounting thereof in accordance with the teachingof the above patent, provides animpractical mechanical construction which cannot effectively prevent rattling in the operator. In other words if a rattling of thewindow is to be avoided, it will be apparent that the dow controlling lever arm upon a movable sup- 3 port which may be permanently adjusted so as to bring the gear sectorcarried thereby into close fitting, anti-rattling relation with the crank operatedworm or be resiliently mounted so as to maintain thisclose fit and at the same time automatically compensate for wear between the lever arm operating gear sector and the crank operated worm during the life of the operator.

For the purpose of illustration, the invention is shown as embodied in an all metal operator of the type commonly used with metallic casement windows and sashes, such as are formed from standard Z-bar stock. Devices of the type in the operator is shown as having a housing,

designated by the numeral Ill, that is adapted to be permanently secured upon a casement window frame H by means of suitable screws l2. The operator housing W has an internal cavity I3 into which the pivotal end of a window operating lever arm Hi is adapted to extend. Adjacent the cavity 53 and under the housing ID the casement window frame it is provided with a slot l5 through which the window operating lever I i projects to engage the casement window. The operator housing It is shown as having an angularly disposed worm l6 journalled vtherein that engages a worm gear sector I! formed upon and concentric to the axis of the winod operating lever arm i l. At the outer end of the worm IE5 there is a suitable crank IS by means of which an operating force may be member 2% also carries a pair of hook-like extensions 22 that are adapted to interlock with an abutment 23 carried by the housing Iii. Associated with the bearing forming member 20 and interposed between it and an end wall of the housing ill there is a relatively stifi leaf spring 2 1 that exerts a pressure upon the clevislike bearing forming member 2E3 which will hold the hook-like extensions 22 thereof into interlocking relation with the abutment 23 and at the same time bias the bearing forming member 21] toward the worm i6 and thus hold the worm gear sector ll of the window operating lever arm i l into tight and anti-rattling en-,

member 2% will be ina short arc about the abutment 23. However, since these movements of the clevis-like bearing forming member 20 will be of small magnitude, the pivotal axis of the window operating lever arm M may be said to move substantially along a straight line transverse to the axis of the window operating lever arm 84.

In addition to the hook-like extension 22 the bearing forming member 20 is also provided with.

.which is of hard bearing metal.

an oppositely disposed extension 26 that is adapted to engage the end wall of the housing II! where it will function to retain the leaf spring 24 in an operative position with respect to the bearing forming member 20 and at the same time act asa stop to prevent any extreme displacement of the bearing forming member 20 against the action of the spring 24 which might result in' a disengagement of the worm l6 and the worm gear sector l1.

Before passing on to the remaining figures of the drawing, it should also be pointed out that the stub shaft i9 is provided with an intermediate portion of relatively large diameter upon which the window operating lever arm I4 is journalled. This provides a large bearing surface for the lever arm l4 and results in a long wearing life between these parts.

Upon referring to Figure 2 of the drawing, it

v will be seen that the housing ID has an intermediately spaced wall or partition 21 which together with the top wall thereof provides a pair of spaced walls between which the clevis-like' bearing forming member 20is adapted to freely slide. The top wall of the housing l0 and the intermediate wall or partition 21 are cut away as at 28 and 29 so as to provide clearance for the extending ends of the stub shaft 19. As shown in this figure of the drawing, the intermediate partition of the housing I!) also has an opening 39 immediately below the extending ends of the hook-like portions 22 of the bearing forming member 20. This opening 30 in the partition 2'17 permits a portion of one of the 1 hook-like projections 22 to be bent, as will hereinafter appear, to more firmly secure the parts against accidental displacement due to any abnormal application of force either through the window operating lever arm M or the crank.

arm l8.

Reference is now made to Figs. 3 and 4 of the drawing, wherein another important aspect of my present invention is illustrated. These figures of the drawing show the manner in which the crank operated worm of the operator mechanism is secured upon and journalled in the operator housing In. For this purpose the housing it] is shown as provided with a diagonally disposed cylindrical bore 3! into which the Worm i6 is adapted to be snugly fitted. It will be understood that the disposition of this bore may be at any angle. However, since the diagonal disposition has met with favor in the trade, it is here shown in the latter position. The teeth of the worm I6 are formed integrally upon a shaft 32 having a diameter corresponding to the root diameterthereof'. At the inner end of the shaft 32 there is a short extension 33 that is adapted to extend into a recess at the end of the bore 3| where it engages a step bearing 34 At the other end of the worm l5 and surrounding the shaft 32 there is a cylindrical sleeve 35 that is adapted to fit tightly in the bore 3| of the housing l0 and provide a hard metal bearing for the shaft 32 at this point. At its inner end the sleeve 35 contacts the end of the spiral teeth of the worm IE and at its outer end it is engaged by a hard washer 31, and at the outside of the spring washer 3'! there is a second immovable washer 38 of somewhat larger outer diameter. This larger washer 38 is secured against an annular shoulder formed at the outer end of the bore 3| by a peening over of the housing H] as at the point 39. With this arrangement, it will be seen that the worm IE will be firmly held in the bore 3| 3 of the housing between hard metal bearing surfaces formed by the step bearing 34 and the sleeve 35 and as a result the housing [0, which in its preferred form is constructed of a relatively softer die cast metal, will be protected against wear. At the outer end of the shaft '32 there is a splined portion 40 upon which the crank arm i8 is fitted. For securing the crank arm l8 upon the shaft 32 there is also shown a set-screw 41 the end of which is adapted to project into an undercut portion 42 of the shaft 32. In assembling the parts last above described, the worm l6 with the cylindrical sleeve 35 are placed in the bore 3! and the washers 36 and 38 together with the spring washer 31 are applied thereto as shown in Fig. 4 of the drawing. After the parts have been placed in the position here illustrated, pressure is applied to the washer 38 suificient to compress the spring washer 31 and as a final operation the end 39 of the housing in is peened over as shown in Fig. 3 of the drawmg.

As illustrated in Fig. of the drawing, the window operating lever arm [4 and the removable bearing forming member 20 are adapted to be preassembled prior to their insertion into the cavity it of the operator housing [0. This preassembly consists in springing the ears 2| of the bearing forming member 20 over the reduced ends of the shaft l9 and a peening over of these ends so as to tightly secure the shaft l9 in the bearing forming member. When the parts are thus assembled and the bearing forming member 20 is positioned upon the operating lever arm [4 as shown, the outer end of the rack I! of the lever arm I4 can first be placed in meshing relation with the worm l6 after whichthe member 28 with the spring 24 can be moved into the housing to place the hook-like extensions 22 thereof into interlocking relation with the abutment 23. In this figure of the drawing, it will be noted that the lowermost hook-like extension 22 of the bearing forming member has a small cut 43 that extends into its outer edge so that a small portion thereof designated by the numeral 44 may bent down into the cavity as is clearly illustrated in Fig. 2 of the drawing. This bending down of the portion 44 on the ear 22 as described provides a further means which in conjunction with the opening 3|] will function to secure the bearing forming member 29 against accidental displacement of the housing I0 after the parts are finally assembled.

At this point it will be noted that the arcuate worm gear portion of the operating lever arm I4 is provided with an undercut 45 that provides a clearance for the abutment 23 when the operating lever arm I4 is in its window closed position. As a result of this undercut 45 it will be seen that the overhanging portion of the arcuate worm gear sector I! will also interlock with the abutment 23 and thus provide an additional factor of safety against the operating lever arm 14 being displaced from the housing ment of the invention, the bearing forming member 20- will be of substantially the same physical construction as that previously described. However, it will be understood that the small cut 43 in the hook-like extension 22 of the bearing forming member 20 may be dispensed with as the set-screw 46 will effectively function to retain these extensions 22 in interlocking relation with the abutment 23. When the device is provided with a set-screw 46 in this manner adjustments may be made during the life of the operator which will takeup any wear that may occur between the worm l6 and the worm gear sector I! and as a result the device can in this way be adjusted as frequently as is required to maintain a tight fitting and anti-rattling connection between the worm l6 and the worm gear sector l1.

While I have, for the sake of clearness and in order to disclose the invention so that the same can be readily understood, described and illustrated specific devices and arrangements, I desire to have it understood that this invention is not limited to the specific means disclosed, but may be embodied in other ways that will suggest themselves to persons skilled in the art. It is believed that this invention is new and it is desired to claim it so that all such changes as come within the scope of the appended claims are to be considered as part of this invention.

Having thus described my invention, what I claim and desire to secure by Letters Patent is 1. In a casement window operator of the character described the combination of a housing of soft metal, said housing having a cavity into which a crank operated worm is disposed, a casement window controlling lever arm having an integrally formed worm engaging gear sector concentric to its axis adapted to extend into the cavity of said housing and engage said worm, a removable clevis-like member forming a wear resisting bearing upon which said lever arm is pivotally mounted, an abutment located within the cavity of said housing, a hook-like extension I I 2. In a window operaing device of the character described, the combination of a lever arm supporting housing, a lever arm having a pivotal axis at one end with an arcuate gear sector concentric to its pivotal axis, a worm gear carried by said housing adapted to engage and cooperate with the gear sector upon said lever arm, a bearing forming member carried by said lever arm and providing a removable pivotal support for said lever arm adapted when secured in said housing to retain the gear sector upon said lever arm in cooperating relation with the worm carried by said housing, said lever arm and said bearing forming member being removable from said housing as a unit for the purpose of disassembly when said lever arm is in a window open position with respect to said housing, a retaining abutment carried by said housing and means carried by said lever arm forming a direct interlocking connection between said retaining 75 abutment and said lever arm to prevent removal of said lever arm and said bearing forming member from said housing when said lever arm is in its window closed position.

3. In a window operating device, the combination of an enclosing housing having a crank operated worm gear at one end and an oppositely disposed end wall, an abutment extending transversely of said housing between said worm gear and said end wall, a pivotally mounted lever arm having a worm engaging gear sector adapted to engage the crank operated worm within said housing, a movable bearing forming member upon which said lever arm is pivotally mounted, said bearing forming member having an extension adapted to interlock with the abutment extending transversely of said housing, and means cooperating with the end wall of said housing for holding the extension upon said bearing forming member in interlocldng engagement with the abutment of said housing and maintaining the gear sector upon said lever arm in engagement with said crank operated worm.

4. In a window operating device, the combination of an enclosing housing having a crank operated worm gear at one end and an oppositely disposed end wall, an abutment extending transversely or" said housing between said worm gear and said end wall, a pivotally mounted lever arm having a worm engaging gear sector adapted to engage the crank operated worm within said housing, a movable bearing forming member upon which said lever arm is pivotally mounted, said bearing forming member having a hook-like extension adapted to engage the abutment extending transversely of said housing, and a spring means interposed between said bearing forming member and the end wall of said housing for biasing the hook-like extension upon said bearing forming member into hooking engagement with the abutment of said housing and maintaining the gear sector upon said lever arm in engagement with said crank operated worm.

5. In a casement window operator, the combination of a housing having a crank operated worm journaled at one end and a transversely extending abutment located in spaced relation therewith, a removable unitary assembly comprising a window controlling lever arm having agear sector adapted to cooperate with the worm within said housing and a bearing forming member having an extending portion adapted to interlock with and pivotally connect said bearing forming member with the transversely extending abutment in said housing, whereby said unitary assembly comprising the lever arm and the movable bearing forming member may move laterally while being held against displacement from said housing, and means carried by said housing and engaging said bearing forming member for re taining the extending portion'thereof in interlocking engagement with the transversely extending abutment of said housing and imparting lateral movement to said bearing forming member, whereby the worm gear sector of said lever arm will be held in cooperating relation with said worm gear.

6. In a casement window operator, the combination of a housing having a crank operatedworm journaled at one end and a transversely extending abutment located in spaced relation therewith, a removable bearing forming member having a hook-like extension adapted to interlock with said abutment when placed within said housing, a window controlling lever arm pivotally inountedwupo'n and carried by said removable bearing forming member, and spring means within said housing for holding the hook-like extension upon said bearing forming member in interlocking engagement with said abutment and imparting a'pivotal movement of said bearing forming member about said abutment, whereby the worm' gear sector of said window controlling lever arm willbe biased into cooperating engagement with the crank operated Worm journaled' insaid" housing.

'7. Ina casement window operator, the combination of a window operating lever having a worm gear sector at its pivotal end, a bearing forming memberhaving spaced ears between which the worm gear sector carrying end of said operating lever is pivotally mounted, a housing having spaced parallel walls slidably engaged by the spaced ears of said bearing forming member, a crank operated worm within said housing adapted to mesh with the gear sector upon said operating lever, an abutment extending transversely between the parallel walls of said housing and spaced from said crank operated worm, an abutment engaging extension upon said bearing forming member adapted to engage said abutment and permit movement of said bearing forming member about said abutment as a fulcrum, and spring means within said housing exerting a force upon said bearing forming member ata point radial with respect to said transversely extending abutment, whereby the gear sector of said operating'lever will be held in operative and wear compensating relation with said crank operated worm.

8. In a casement window operator, the combination of a window operating lever having a worm -gear sector at its pivotal end, a bearing forming member having spaced ears between which the Worm gear sector end of said operating lever is pivotally mounted, a housing having spaced parallel walls slidably engaged by the spaced ears of said bearing forming member, a crank operated worm carried by said housing adapted to mesh with the gear sector upon said operating lever, a fulcrum forming abutment extending transversely between the spaced walls of said housing, said abutment being disposed in spaced relation with said crank operated worm and substantially in line with the axis about which said operating lever pivots, means carried by said bearing forming member adapted to engage said fulcrum forming abutment and limit the movement of .said bearing forming member to a substantially lateral path, a spring means disposed within said housing and engaging said bearing forming member for imparting movement to said bearing forming member about said abutment as a fulcrum; and means carried by said bearingforming member for retaining said spring means within the housing and preventing any abnormal ing'lever is i'nlits window closed position, whereby when the casement window is in its closed position.

bination of a housing having spaced parallel walls forming oppositely disposed bearing surfaces for a movable bearing forming member, a fulcrum forming abutment extending between said spaced parallel walls, a movable bearing forming member having an inwardly disposed extension adapted to interlock with said abutment, a crank operated worm gear disposed in spaced relation with said abutment, a window operating lever pivotally mounted upon said bearing forming member and having an arcuate gear sector engaging said worm gear, and means disposed with relation to said abutment oppositely to said worm gear for rotating said bearing 20 forming member and the extension carried 10. In a casement window operator, the com-' thereby about said abutment as a fulcrum to maintain said gear sector and said worm gear in anti-rattling engagement.

, 11. In a casement window operator of the type comprising a crank operated worm gear and a pivotally mounted window operating lever, the combination of a housing having a fulcrum forming abutment extending parallel to and at a point disposed inwardly from the axis of the window operating lever, a movable bearing forming member upon which the window operating lever is pivotally mounted having an extension movably engaging said abutment, and means within said housing adapted to move said bearing forming member about said abutment as a fulcrum to compensate for wear and maintain a tight fitting engagement between the crank operated worm gear and the gear sector upon said window operating lever.

ALBERT LANG. 

